Everett puts planned overhaul to Henry M. Jackson Park on hold

EVERETT — Plans to overhaul an aging Henry M. Jackson Park are now in slow-motion.

Like everything else, it seems the crummy economy is to blame.

The 15-acre north Everett park badly needs a fix for its soggy baseball fields and decades-old play equipment.

The city’s parks department has steadily been making plans, including gathering ideas from neighbors and creating a park master plan. They’d planned to hire a consultant right about now to draw up plans for the first phase of the project.

That’s on hold because the $3.1 million to complete construction won’t be available, said Paul Kaftanski, Everett’s parks and recreation director.

The city planned to use a combination of city money and grants from other sources, all of which have diminished.

The city does have the $300,000 for the design of the first phase. If the City Council OKs it, that money will be set aside to use on other, smaller parks projects.

The parks department does plan to make smaller improvements to the Jackson Park as money becomes available, Kaftanski said.

Plans for the park include versatile athletic fields, a bigger and better playground, a community garden with vegetable plots, picnic shelters, walking paths and off-street parking off E. Marine View Drive.